New Delhi || 24-12-2024
The month of November saw a sharp increase in cholera cases and deaths compared to the same period in 2023, with suspected cases rising by 37% and deaths by 27%.
Yemen’s cholera crisis comes on top of more than a decade of conflict, widespread economic collapse and crumbling health infrastructure. The country also experienced its largest cholera outbreak in recent history from 2017 to 2020, with transmission persisting ever since.
“The outbreak of waterborne diseases like cholera and acute watery diarrhoea imposes an additional burden on an already stressed health system facing multiple disease outbreaks,” said Arturo Pesigan, a WHO representative in Yemen.
WHO and humanitarian philanthropists are strained in their efforts to address the increasing needs due to severe funding shortages. Critical challenges, including inadequate access to clean drinking water, poor sanitation, and limited treatment availability, are fuelling the current outbreak, WHO said.
Adding to the problem, severe shortage of funding also obstructs the path of treatment.
Without immediate financial support, health partners warn that Yemen may face another devastating scenario like the 2017-2020 outbreak, which overwhelmed its fragile healthcare system.
